10 Tips for Indian Pilgrims

‘Salwar kameez, pant-shirt or a track suit’ are a better choice for for pilgrims going to Amarnath Shrine, according to their board. Shown, pilgrims walk along a mountain path to the sacred Amarnath Cave, June 30, 2012.

In summer, in particular, Indians of different faiths journey to mountain destinations to view natural and manmade sights believed to represent gods and holy figures.

On Thursday, devout Hindus will embark upon the Amarnath pilgrimage in the Himalayan mountains of Jammu and Kashmir state, which will last 55 days this year.

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But pilgrims tend to be of varying degrees of fitness and travel experience – in fact this may be one of the few times in their lives that they embark on a trek.

That’s why the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, which works with authorities each year to help hundreds of thousands of pilgrims visit a holy cave in Kashmir, and travel web sites focused on sacred destinations, offer a series of travel tips for Indian pilgrims.

Here is a compilation of some of them:

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A woman mounted a horse during the Amarnath Yatra, June 28, 2012.

1. Get fit. Several of the shrine boards and travel agencies recognize that Indian city life does not lend itself to physical fitness. They recommend embarking on an exercise program about a month before a pilgrimage, usually by walking four to five kilometers a day, or playing badminton. Given that outdoor exercise is quite a hot endeavor in many cities from April onwards, a travel site registered to Max Holidays, suggests that an alternative could be “climbing a 10/20-storey building.”

2. ‘Ladies: Saree Is Not a Suitable Dress for the Yatra.’ Both elegant and formal, the sari (also spelled saree) is a natural choice when visiting a temple, for example. This may be why some women visiting Himalayan shrines show up in saris. The Amarnath Shrine Board would like to discourage this. “Salwar kameez, pant-shirt or a track suit will be better,” says the board.

3. Mind your pony. There’s nothing that contributes to a high-altitude traffic jamlike the simultaneous realization that you would like an extra shawl, and the fact that all ponies and their loads

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Be careful not to catch a cold on your pilgrimage, a travel site warns.

look the same to you. “It would be better if the porter/horses/ponies carrying your luggage travel just in front or behind you, as you may suddenly need something from your baggage,” says the board. Keep track of your pony, and things will keep things moving along nicely.

4. Forget the flip-flops. Slippers and mountain trails don’t mix well, says the Amarnath Shrine Board. “There are steep rises and falls on the route to the Holy Cave. Only wear trekking shoes with laces,” the board warns.

5. Keep an umbrella upon your person. Literally. The Amarnath Board advises pilgrims to carry “a small umbrella (preferably one which is tied with an elastic band around your head and supported by a strap around the chin).”Sounds comfortable.

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‘Try and make friends with the Tibetan guide and driver,’ suggests a travel website. Tibetan nomads carry baggage on yaks for pilgrims to Mt. Kailash, June 16, 2007.

6. Be careful not to catch a cold. We’d all like to know how to achieve this one.

7. BYOP. Although several pilgrimages include visits to temples that have priests, this is not the case for the visit to Mount Kailash, the abode of the Hindu god of destruction Shiva, according to religious belief. The mountain, which pilgrims circumnavigate, is located in Tibet, where it is called Gang Rinpoche. For that visit, one travel site advises making your own provisions. “As there is no Hindu Temple at Holy Lake and Mt. Kailash as such no priest is available,” the website says. “If you want some spiritual activity to be performed, please make sure that your personal priest accompany you from your own country or from Nepal.”

8. Woo Tibetans with archaic technology. Visitors to the peak known by Indians as Mount Kailash will be accompanied by Tibetan guides. They are not as unfriendly as they seem, advises one site. “Try and make friends with the Tibetan guide and driver. They may appear stand-offish initially but are warm and simple people,” said the Max Holidays site. “Small gifts like Hindi movie cassettes, dark glasses, a cap/hat etc. go a long way in overcoming language problems and establishing rapport.”

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Schoolchildren staged a peace rally for the Amarnath Yatra, Ahmedabad, July 2, 2008.

9. Don’t go rogue. By the time your journey approaches its end, and you have gazed upon the idol or icicle you came to see, it’s possible you will be heartily sick of the other pilgrims in your group. You might feel like continuing to commune with nature without them. Don’t give in to such ignoble impulses. ”On your return journey, you must leave the Base Camp along with all members of your group,” says the board.

10. Believe. Some of these pilgrimages are very arduous and involve a lot of physical discomfort, particularly for those not used to such journeys, say several sites. So, it is important to remember why you came and draw upon your faith when you’re tired and exhausted. And remember that a holy site is often revered by adherents of more than one belief system. “Do not play with the sentiments of any particular religion,” says another site.

Have you visited a religious destination in India? Please share your experience in the Comments section.

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